You're a part of the wiki![]
When you first see a wiki, it doesn't seem like it could possibly work. If anybody can come along and change things, then how can the information be trusted? Doesn't it just get vandalized, or fall into chaos?
Once you start participating, you see that that "weakness" is actually a wiki's greatest strength. Sure, anybody can add anything -- and then everybody else gets to proofread it, and fix mistakes. Information that looks suspicious can be verified. Vandalism is almost always fixed within minutes. It's possible for someone to post errors, or nonsense -- but over time, the best wins out.
If you're reading these words, then you're a Indie Dreams editor. If you see a problem on one of the pages, don't roll your eyes and complain about it. Just fix it!
Create a user name[]
Log in and create a user name -- it helps you (and everybody) keep track of your contributions, and it makes it possible to communicate with other contributors.
You're also invited to post your name on your user page -- either your full name, or just a first name and an initial. It's not required, but it helps everyone get to know you and trust you.
Neutral Point of View[]
Articles on Indie Dreams should be written from a neutral point of view (NPOV), representing all views fairly and without bias. Post facts, not opinions. If you write about an issue that fans disagree about, describe the debate without taking sides. Avoid "weasel words" like "Many fans think x," which is usually just a way of attributing your own opinions to other people. For more discussion, see Wikipedia's article on NPOV.
Show your sources[]
Other readers should be able to verify the information that you post. Cite video game titles wherever possible, and give sources for quotes. If you find information in a book or on a website, tell us the title or the URL. If it's clumsy to put that information in the article, then add a "References" heading at the bottom of the page. It's especially important to source behind the scenes information; we don't want to spread unfounded rumors.
Talk pages[]
Sign talk posts with four tildes -- ~~~~ -- which automatically adds your user name and a date stamp. When you reply on a talk page, put a colon (:) at the front of your post to indent it.
When you post a question on an article's talk page, you can list it in Active Talk Pages by adding a talk box. Just add this template to the top of the article page: {{talk}} -- that'll automatically add a box pointing people to your question, and it'll list you on the Active Talk Pages. You can browse through that list to find other ongoing discussions.
See How to use Talk pages for more details.
Fancy signatures[]
Here's how to make a fancy signature for your talk posts:
Click on the "preferences" tab at the top right of your screen.
On the Preferences page, put this in the Nickname box, with your User name and real first name plugged in:
- -- ''[[User:Username|<font color="Blue">Firstname</font>]] ([[User talk:Username|<font color="Blue" size="1">talk</font>]])''
Then check the "Raw signatures" box underneath, and hit the "Save" button at the bottom of the page.
Then, when you sign your talk posts, you just have to type the four tildes, and the new signature will appear. You can tweak that code in a bunch of different ways; feel free to play around with it!
Link sanity[]
Only link a name the first time it's used on a page. Please don't link every single capitalized word -- it makes the page confusing and messy.
The exception is on lists -- if some of the items in a list are linked, then go ahead and link all of them, even if they're repeated elsewhere in the article.
How to upload pictures[]
Click on "Upload file" on the left navigation bar to upload pictures. You can add your image to any page using this code:
- [[Image:yourpicture.jpg|thumb|300px|Caption for your picture.]]
Images should not exceed 300 pixels wide for article tidyness and copyright adherence.
If you upload an image in error, or do not intend to use it, tag the article with {{delete}} so that an administrator can remove the file from the wiki. Images are subject for deletion if they are not used.
How to add category tags[]
You can put an article into a category by adding this code: [[Category:YourCategory]] . You can change the way the article is alphabetized within the category like this: [[Category:Commercial Games|Escapee, The]].
Before you create a category, check the Category list to see if there's a similar category that already exists. If the category doesn't exist yet, then adding that code will create the category. You'll need to add some text to the new category page to make it work properly.
External links[]
You can add links to other websites by putting one bracket around the site's address, like this: [http://www.goatstore.com/]. That'll look like this: [1].
You can add a description to the link by adding a space before the description, like this: [http://www.goatstore.com/publishing/ Official GOAT Store Publishing website]. That comes out like this: Official GOAT Store Publishing website.
No shopping links[]
Please don't add links to Amazon or other commercial sites. It's nice to help other Indie Dreams fans find the cool products that are available, but we don't want to look like we're trying to sell things. We also don't want to open the possibility to people posting sponsored Amazon links, or links to their own Ebay store. If a product is currently in print and available, you can note that in the article. If that inspires readers to buy the product, then they can find it online themselves.
History tab[]
Nothing is ever lost on a wiki! You can see all of the changes that have been made to a page -- and who made them -- by clicking on the "History" tab at the top of any page.
Setting your preferences[]
There's a lot of useful stuff on your Preferences page.
You can change your display so that links show up without the underlining. You can also change your time zone, and the number of items you see on the Recent Changes page or the Category list.
Keyboard shortcuts[]
There's some helpful shortcuts to navigate around within a page.
Alt-T : Talk
Alt-E : Edit
Alt-H : History
Alt-R : Recent Changes
Dealing with vandalism[]
Vandalism isn't much of a problem on a wiki, because everybody has the power to fix it when they see it. See the Vandalism help page for instructions on how to fix vandalized pages, and how to discourage the vandals.
Contact founder[]
Indie Dreams was founded on August 22, 2006 by MetaFox.
If you have questions or comments about the wiki, you can leave a message on MetaFox's talk page.
Check the Help pages for more information on contributing to Indie Dreams!